Seattle police officers shot and killed a 30-year-old woman on Sunday after she called to report a burglary at her apartment, KIRO 7 News reports. Charleena Lyles, who is African American, reportedly had "several" of her four children in the home when she was killed.
"[Lyles'] family members said she was several months pregnant and had been struggling with mental-health issues for the past year," The Seattle Times reports. "They said she was concerned authorities would take her children, one of whom they said has Down syndrome."
The police that responded to Lyles' call also received a "safety caution" of an increased risk to officers at her address. At some point on Sunday, Lyles confronted the police with a knife and the officers both responded by firing their weapons:
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On the audio, the woman can be heard discussing with the officers that there was a break-in. They calmly discuss an X-Box video game console being taken and roughly 15 seconds later, officers could be heard saying "Get back! Get back!" and "We need help" before gunfire erupts. A child's cry can be heard in the background. [The Washington Post]
"If worse came to worse, use a taser instead of a gun for someone that has three kids inside of their house," Lyles' brother, Domico Jones, told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. "I feel that it's not gonna bring no harm to nobody."
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray called the shooting "a tragedy for all involved."
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